There is a fair amount of evidence showing that highly sugary drinks like chocolate milk and pop are not only greatly contributing to childhood obesity but also ADD and other learning disabilities.
So, you can imagine my surprise when recent studies showed unusually high amounts of the poisonous substance arsenic in apple juice kid’s size juice boxes. Back in September Dr. Mehmet Oz, from the very popular Dr. Oz show on TV, aired a show reporting that he had done testing on certain juices and found many of them to be dangerously high in arsenic. The FDA jumped, calling the segment irresponsible and misleading because it did not specify the difference between inorganic arsenic (the harmful kind) and organic arsenic (the harmless kind) and combined the both kinds of arsenic in the study, which in their belief, led to unreliable levels.
Consumer Reports, however, did its own study and their findings back Dr. Oz’s claims up. Out of the 88 samples of apple and grape juice they tested, 10% had levels of arsenic over the 10 parts per billion that the FDA deems to be a safe amount, and 25% of the samples tested showed lead levels above the 5 parts per billion allowed for bottled drinking water. Consumer Report’s tests the arsenic that was found in these juices are inorganic…the dangerous kind. Brands with the questionably dangerous arsenic levels include Wal-Mart (NYSE:WMT) brand, (Great Value) Walgreens (NYSE:WAG), Welch’s, Apple and Eve (Cranberries Limited, Inc.), and Motts (Dr. Pepper Snapple Group Inc – NYSE:DPS).
Pretty disturbing to know that the FDA has no standards in place when it comes to testing for dangerous substances in our children’s juices. Not to mention we can’t seem to figure out why it is that autism, ADD, and other learning disorders are on the rise. I recommend using organic fruits and juicing them for children as this will not only prevent them sucking down arsenic but also it is much lower in sugar and higher in fiber.
